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Ruthie Blum

Ruthie Blum is a Tel Aviv-based columnist and commentator. She writes and lectures on Israeli politics and culture, as well as on U.S.-Israel relations. The winner of the Louis Rappaport award for excellence in commentary, she is the author of the book "To Hell in a Handbasket: Carter, Obama, and the 'Arab Spring.'”

Former Public Security Minister Omer Barlev, chairman of the board of Angel Bakeries, at a "Brothers in Arms" protest outside the home of venerated Rabbi Gershon Edelstein in Bnei Brak, May 4, 2023. Photo by Flash90.

Anti-haredi sentiment and the boycott of Angel Bakeries

Former Public Security Minister Omer Barlev is a private citizen with the rights that entails. But he’s also the chairman of a commercial enterprise who ought to take his position into account while bashing a community of consumers.

May 7, 2023

A pro-government rally near the Knesset in Jerusalem, April 27, 2023. Photo by Arie Leib Abrams/Flash90.

The Jerusalem rally was a reminder that democracy didn’t lose; the left did

The Orwellian doublespeak of the Israeli opposition is so blatant that it’s putting regular propaganda to shame and managed to sow self-doubt in coalition circles.

April 30, 2023

Baruch Ben-Yigal, father of the late IDF soldier Amit, attends a protest in Tel Aviv against the Supreme Court decision to cancel the demolition order for the home of the Palestinian terrorist who murdered his son, Aug. 16, 2020. Photo by Tomer Neuberg/Flash90.

Tears of heartbreak and joy

Baruch Ben-Yigal’s story is a perfect metaphor for the indelible link between death and rebirth that is Israel’s curse and blessing.

April 23, 2023

Israeli President Isaac Herzog delivers an address at Yad Vashem on the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day, Jerusalem, April 17, 2023. Credit: Kobi Gideon/Government Press Office.

Holocaust remembrance and inexcusable hyperbole

Israeli President Isaac Herzog conveyed an appropriate Yom Hashoah message with just the right tone, but the people who most needed to hear and heed it either weren’t listening or didn’t think it applied to them.

April 18, 2023

Israeli protest the government and its judicial reform plans, Tel Aviv on April 8, 2023. Photo by Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90.

No deterrence for Israeli demonstrations

Even an anti-government advocate’s reasonable request for a security-related pause in the protests is rejected by fellow activists.

April 9, 2023

Israeli Air Force technicians at work during an aerial exercise at the Ovda base in southern Israel, Oct. 24, 2021. Photo by Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90.

Saluting the unsung heroes of the Israeli Air Force

The well-deserved high standing of IAF pilots has gone to their heads in a dangerous way. Throwing their weight around to influence government policy is bad enough, but crushing the morale of those who maintain their planes is beyond inexcusable.

April 2, 2023

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads a Likud Party meeting at the Knesset, March 13, 2023. Photo by Erik Marmor/Flash90.

Benjamin Netanyahu’s risky leadership move

Invoking the Judgment of Solomon to explain his pause in judicial reform, the Israeli prime minister staved off an immediate crisis. But will it cause his base to turn against him?

March 28, 2023

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant at the Knesset, March 22, 2023. Photo by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90.

The Israeli defense minister’s shameful retreat

Prominently on display in Yoav Gallant’s speech were two traits that make him unfit for his job: cowardice and betrayal.

March 26, 2023

An anti-government protest outside a Tel Aviv retirement home, March 16, 2023. Photo by Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90.

The protest movement can’t unravel the thread of Israel’s unique tapestry

Despite the damage the demonstrators are doing to Israel’s standing and security, the one thing they won’t be able to shake is the underlying health of a society that cares deeply about preserving Judaism, Zionism and—yes—popular culture.

March 20, 2023